Blog
5 advantages of owning your own home
Tuesday, July 17, 2018
It’s a significant moment in your life when you buy your first home, create a space that is truly yours and put down your roots. While it can feel a little overwhelming with the additional responsibility, there are far more pros to owning your own home than there are cons.
You’re free to create the home you want: When you rent, you’re often restricted to the style and colour choices of your landlord. By far one of the most exciting things about owning your own home is the option and the possibility to modify it to reflect your style and taste. You can paint any room any colour, knock through a wall to create a bigger space, or hang as many photo frames as you wish whilst knowing that it will be you who benefits from your homes increased value, not your landlords.
Build equity: Equity is the amount of your home that you actually own. As you make your monthly mortgage payments, part of that payment will go towards paying off the interest, while the rest goes towards paying off the capital. So each month you pay off your mortgage, your equity will increase, enabling you to reinvest it into your home itself or possibly a new home.
Predictable monthly housing payment: When you rent, there is always a risk that your rent payments could increase. If you own your home and you’ve taken out a fixed-rate mortgage, you will pay the same amount each month until the end of your term. This can provide stability and help with your living expenses, so when your income goes up it can be budgeted elsewhere.
Live by your own rules: Often when you rent you’re expected to follow your landlord’s rules, such as ‘no pets’. When you own your own home, you can make your own house rules and have as many puppies, kittens and cute furry friends as you wish!
Plant your roots: One of the nicest things about being a homeowner is the strong sense of stability and security it can offer. You can rest assured knowing this is a place you can always call home and make memories with your loved ones, should you wish to plant your roots and settle down for the long term.
Our thanks to Suzy Whitley-Park at Mortgage Advice Bureau for this guest blog.
